Kevork Djansezian, Getty Images
122116-elonmusk-tesla-kevorkdjansezian.jpg
122116-elonmusk-tesla-kevorkdjansezian.jpg
122116-elonmusk-tesla-kevorkdjansezian.jpg
122116-elonmusk-tesla-kevorkdjansezian.jpg
122116-elonmusk-tesla-kevorkdjansezian.jpg

Tesla Boosts Credit Lines Again to Aid Elon Musk Expansion

Dec. 21, 2016
Two months after CEO Elon Musk tweeted that raising debt wouldn’t “be necessary” before the end of the year, Tesla increased its borrowing capacity under two credit agreements by about half a billion dollars.

Tesla Motors Inc. increased its borrowing capacity under two credit agreements by about $500 million — two months after CEO Elon Musk tweeted that raising debt wouldn’t “be necessary” before the end of the year.

Tesla, which acquired money-losing solar-roof installer SolarCity Corp. last month for $2 billion, boosted a credit line with Deutsche Bank AG by $200 million, according to a regulatory filing Tuesday. The company has the potential to add another $50 million to that agreement and increased a separate credit facility by another $300 million.

Musk surprised investors in October by saying Tesla didn’t need to raise equity or borrow money this quarter, when some analysts were saying it might soon need $2.5 billion to cover the entrepreneur’s ambitious plans. With Tuesday’s disclosure, Tesla’s credit lines would reach about $1.8 billion.

“I don’t think it’s that shocking that over time Tesla needs more funding,” said David Whiston, an analyst with Morningstar Inc. in Chicago. “It’s young and has enormous growth plans, so over time I would expect more equity raises and more revolver capacity.”

Tesla isn’t commenting beyond the contents of the filing on plans to expand its credit lines, said Sarah O’Brien, a company spokeswoman.

The shares were up less than 1% to $209.11 in premarket trading Wednesday in New York.

The automaker sold roughly 50,000 cars in 2015 and aims to crank out a half-million vehicles annually by 2018. Most of those sales are expected to come from the Model 3, Tesla’s first mass-market electric car scheduled to debut by the end of next year. The company also is building a massive factory for battery production east of Reno, Nevada, and Musk has mapped out a vision that includes production of energy-generating solar roof tiles that integrate with the company’s power-storage units.

Tesla reported a quarterly profit in October, the first for the Palo Alto, California-based company in eight quarters. Tesla and SolarCity — both chaired by Musk — have conducted five separate equity offerings since the solar company went public in December 2012.

On Dec. 15, Tesla and a Netherlands subsidiary increased a revolver line by $200 million to $1.2 billion, with potential to add another $50 million, Tesla said in the filing. Tesla Finance LLC and another finance unit doubled the size of a separate credit facility to $600 million.

By Kevin Miller and Keith Naughton, with assistance from Jamie Butters, Sridhar Natarajan and David Welch.

Popular Sponsored Recommendations

Empowering the Modern Workforce: The Power of Connected Worker Technologies

March 1, 2024
Explore real-world strategies to boost worker safety, collaboration, training, and productivity in manufacturing. Emphasizing Industry 4.0, we'll discuss digitalization and automation...

3 Best Practices to Create a Product-Centric Competitive Advantage with PRO.FILE PLM

Jan. 25, 2024
Gain insight on best practices and strategies you need to accelerate engineering change management and reduce time to market. Register now for your opportunity to accelerate your...

Transformative Capabilities for XaaS Models in Manufacturing

Feb. 14, 2024
The manufacturing sector is undergoing a pivotal shift toward "servitization," or enhancing product offerings with services and embracing a subscription model. This transition...

Shifting Your Business from Products to Service-Based Business Models: Generating Predictable Revenues

Oct. 27, 2023
Executive summary on a recent IndustryWeek-hosted webinar sponsored by SAP

Voice your opinion!

To join the conversation, and become an exclusive member of IndustryWeek, create an account today!